Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to methods for communicating data and more particularly to methods for generating templates for the conversion of XML and other non-display-formatted data to formats which are suitable for presentation on specific devices or classes of devices which utilize corresponding mark-up languages.
Background of the Invention
The Internet has become a powerful tool for disseminating information. Although the Internet was originally used to communicate scientific and technical data, increased numbers of service providers, improved applications for retrieving data and user-friendly interfaces have made it a useful tool for millions upon millions of users. It is commonly used by people of all ages for transmitting and receiving messages, for research, for shopping and for surfing (browsing) the Internet.
The increased popularity of the Internet is due in part to the amount of information which is available, and in part to the convenience with which people can access this information. Generally speaking, the information is accessed with browsers of various types. Traditionally, browsers have been computer-based applications which provide user interfaces to the Internet. These browsers are configured to request information from servers which are also connected to the Internet. The browsers typically communicate with the servers using a protocol known as hypertext transfer protocol, or HTTP. The servers, in turn, provided their information to the browsers via text and data which is marked or tagged so that the browser can format it for display to the user. This formatting information is typically provided through the use of hypertext markup language (HTML) tags that indicate which pieces of information should be formatted in a given manner.
The use of HTML to provide formatting information to the browsers allows the same information to be transmitted to different types of browsers which have different capabilities, yet still be presented to the user in a readable/viewable fashion, adapted to the capabilities of the respective browsers. As a result, information providers do not have to tailor the format of their information to a particular type of browser and thereby limit the dissemination of the information. Instead, they can provide information in a single format which is accessible by a much greater user population.
The accessibility of Internet-based information has increased further with recent developments in browser technology. Browsers can be incorporated into portable, wireless devices so that users can access the Internet without being tied to a PC. For example, some cellular phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs) incorporate Web browsers. Information which is transmitted to these browsers typically incorporates wireless markup language (WML), rather than HTML tags.
One of the difficulties in accommodating all of these different types of client devices is that each of them may use a different markup language which is specifically adapted to the capabilities of the corresponding device. A mechanism must therefore be provided to enable the conversion of generic data to the appropriate markup language for each of the devices. Typically, this mechanism is provided through a set of templates, wherein each of the templates is configured to convert the generic data into a corresponding markup language.
There are several drawbacks to the use of these templates. One of these drawbacks relates to the fact that each of the templates is configured to convert data corresponding to one particular service into a markup language corresponding to one particular client device. Whenever it is desired to enable the transfer of data to a new client device, or to transfer data corresponding to a new service to the existing client, it is necessary to generate a new set of templates which is configured to make the required content transformations. It should be noted that, to support a single new client device, a set of templates corresponding to each of the available services is necessary. Likewise, in order to support a single new data service, a set of templates corresponding to each supported client device is necessary. Because the creation of new templates (typically using JSP or ASP technology) is difficult, the need to create a new set of templates for each new client device or service presents a daunting task.